Obamacare: Officials look out for phony exchange websites

Federal officials are watching for fake websites as states get ready to launch their health insurance marketplaces Oct. 1, Kaiser Health News reports.

As states are setting up their online health insurance marketplaces, officials are watching for look-alike websites that can lead consumers to be the victims of fraud or simply, confusion.

States are on the lookout for websites created by interest groups, private insurance companies and sometimes scammers that have similar web addresses and the appearances of the official state exchange websites. Officials are intervening in some cases and trying to make sure consumers are able to spot a fake site before they give out private information.

“These exchanges could range from deceptive but relatively benign marketing devices for legitimate insurance companies to malicious devices that are designed to steal your identity or insurance information,” said James Quiggle, communications director for the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud.

In California, for example, typing in Coveredcalifornia.com takes a user to an informational website, with a fine print disclaimer that it is not the state-run site Coveredca.com. State insurance officials monitor the website — run by the Health Exchange Consulting group as a source of information on the state exchange — because consumers may easily type in the wrong web address. Because the site is not being used for commercial purposes, however, the state has not interfered.

“We have been monitoring various sites to make sure they are not doing anything illegal or misrepresenting themselves as an agent of Covered California,” said Larry Hicks, spokesperson for the state’s exchange. “We do periodic searches and domain searches to see what pops up.”

Pennsylvania insurance officials intervened in July when a private insurance company welcomed consumers to the “Pennsylvania Health Exchange” with the state seal in the corner. The company took the website down immediately and apologized.

Meanwhile, the AFL-CIO, one of the Obama Administration’s biggest supporters, wants changes to the Affordable Care Act, according to Bloomberg.

The AFL-CIO is asking for changes to the Affordable Care Act, President Barack Obama’s landmark health-care overhaul, potentially opening fissures between the White House and one of its staunch political allies.

The largest U.S. labor federation approved a resolution yesterday urging amendments to the law in a voice vote on the final day of its quadrennial convention in Los Angeles.

The action by the AFL-CIO, which endorsed the law when it passed in 2010, adds to the political challenges facing the Obama administration as it implements the law. Republicans have vowed to block the union-backed changes, making it unlikely they could get through Congress.

“If the Affordable Care Act is not fixed and it destroys the health and welfare funds that we have all fought for and stand for, then I believe it needs to be repealed,” Terry O’Sullivan, general president of the Laborer’s International Union of North America, said on the convention floor. “We can’t have the unintended consequences for the proud men and women that we represent to be collateral damage in the health care fight in this country.”

Labor groups were among the strongest proponents of the health-care law when it was being debated by Congress, and the Obama administration is trying to maintain their support as it rolls out new insurance programs this fall. Two top administration officials, White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett and Labor Secretary Thomas Perez, were in Los Angeles this week to reassure union officials that the White House is open to weighing changes.